


Sweet Pea

by Brosequartz



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Big Brother Jesse McCree, Crushes, Gen, Young Fareeha "Pharah" Amari
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-30
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 00:50:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13202166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brosequartz/pseuds/Brosequartz
Summary: 13-year-old Fareeha falls in love with the 18-year-old doctor Angela Ziegler as soon as she lays eyes on her. She enlists Jesse's help in figuring out a way to impress the new medic.





	1. I've got you on my radar

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was a Christmas present for my best friend! I'm publishing it now that he's read it. 
> 
> I have an additional chapter in the works, and that will take place 10-12 years after this, with actual Pharmercy in it :D
> 
> This fic was beta read by Jaquel :)

Fareeha adored Angela Ziegler from the very day she joined Overwatch. She felt as though she had fallen in love already, at the tender age of 13. Her mother invited the young doctor over for dinner to welcome her, and Fareeha was immediately infatuated. Dr. Ziegler was charming, cheerful, and had a beautiful smile. She was only 18 and had already accomplished amazing things. That was why Overwatch had hired her, of course. Fareeha stared at her as they ate, not saying much, feeling her face grow warm every time Angela looked at her. 

When they saw her to the door, Angela said, “Thank you so much for having me, Captain. And you, Fareeha.” She gave a little wave and turned out the door. Fareeha’s mother gave her a knowing smile as they walked back to the kitchen to clean up. 

“What are you smiling about?” she asked, blushing.

“Oh, nothing, habibti.”

“Mum! What is it?” 

“I’ll do the dishes, you run along now.”

Embarrassed and pouting, Fareeha stomped back to her room. She flopped down onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling. She couldn’t stop thinking about Dr. Ziegler. It was as though a giant painting of her covered the ceiling, filling her thoughts and making her heart beat faster. She rolled over and buried her face in her pillow. Angela was so beautiful- her hair looked so soft and shiny, her laughter was as bright and lovely as the jingling of bells, and her smile was as though sunbeams shone out of her face. She kicked her legs up and down on the bed, wondering how she could see more of her. She huffed. “What does mum know, anyway?”

-

The next day, Fareeha woke bright and early, though still not as early as her mother, who was already out of the apartment. Their housing was fixed inside the Watchpoint for convenience and safety, although it was far removed from the rooms where the inner workings of Overwatch took place. Because her mother was so highly ranked, it also had a fantastic view of the Mediterranean, and was spacious and well furnished. Not at all like Jesse’s place. His was really more of a barracks or a dormitory than an apartment. It just had one small window overlooking the practice range, and was furnished with only the bunk bed he had all to himself, two desks, two chairs, and two wardrobes. Fareeha was headed there now, having had breakfast and nothing else to do.

She knocked on the door of his room. It was halfway down a concrete hallway, with numbered plaques on the doors and fluorescent lights dangling from the ceiling. She clasped her hands behind her and rolled back and forth on her heels as she heard the sounds of someone groaning, getting out of bed, and walking across the room. 

A very sleepy-looking Jesse cracked the door open and looked out. Laying eyes on Fareeha, he smiled blearily and opened the door a little wider. “Hey there,” he said. 

“You’re in bed late.” she said bluntly.

Jesse laughed. “It’s my day off, pumpkin. What can I do for you?”

“Have you met the new doctor?” she asked.

“Oh yeah, Dr. Ziegler? Met her yesterday. Seems to really know her stuff. Why do you-”

“Isn’t she beautiful?” Fareeha interrupted. 

Jesse looked taken aback. “Well, uh, I suppose so.”

Fareeha glared at him and crossed her arms over her chest. “Let me in there.”

“It’s a mess in here, sweetpea.”

“Well then,” she moved her hands to her hips. “Get dressed and meet me outside in twenty! We have things to talk about!”

Jesse chuckled. “Yes, ma’am,” he said, giving her a little salute. She turned on her heel and marched away.

She waited for him outside, on the lawn beside the practice range. That was always their meeting spot. 

When he arrived, he tipped his hat at her. “Howdy,” he said. He settled down on the grass beside her. “So,” he began, “you’ve got eyes for the new doc, huh?” 

Fareeha slammed her hands down on the ground. “She’s amazing, Jesse! She’s smart and beautiful and Overwatch hired her even though she’s still a teenager!”

Jesse raised his eyebrows at her. “I-” he started.

“Well I guess they did that for you too,” she interrupted, “but that’s not Overwatch, that was just Gabriel.” 

He laughed and tipped his hat back a bit. “Whatever you say, sugar.”

Fareeha stared intently at him. “What do I do, Jesse?”

“What do you do?”

“Yes! What do I do to get her to marry me?”

“Get her to marry you?!” From Jesse’s expression, he had clearly not been expecting her to say that. “Aren’t you a little young to be gettin’ married, darlin’?”

“Ugh, I don’t mean NOW,” she said, rolling her eyes theatrically. “But someday when I’m old enough!”

Jesse rested his chin in his hand. He thought for a moment. Fareeha stared at him intently, leaning forward on both her arms, palms planted in the grass. 

Apparently searching for words, he looked back down at her. “Well, you’re an uh, charming young lady…” Fareeha beamed at him. He continued, “Have you thought about maybe… bringin’ her flowers? Or, uh-”

“Oh, Jesse, that’s perfect!” she threw her arms around his shoulders and squeezed him in a tight hug. He let out a startled ‘oof.’ Then, as she dashed away, he tipped his hat back to watch her, hair streaming out behind her as she ran.

-

Fareeha clambered over the rocks atop the cliffs overlooking the sea. She wasn’t allowed to leave the base on her own, but she could wander wherever she pleased inside the confines of the Watchpoint. The space between the comm tower and the cliffs wasn’t exactly a garden, but it was covered in pink sweet pea flowers, which climbed up the rock faces and the side of the building. Fareeha picked as many of them as she could hold, and scurried back towards the practice range.

When she got there, Jesse was gone. She huffed, disappointed, and stomped off. 

He wasn’t in his room, either, or the lounge used by the lower-ranking people stationed at the Watchpoint. Fareeha headed towards the officers’ lounge. Jesse wasn’t technically allowed in there, but because Fareeha’s mum and Gabriel liked him, an exception was made. If he wasn’t there, one of them might be and she could ask them.

Arriving at the lounge, she opened the door and peered inside. Jesse wasn’t there- but Gabriel was! He was holding a cup of coffee and sitting on one of the couches, gazing out the window.

“Gabriel!” Fareeha shouted. He turned his head towards her.

“Fareeha!” He replied, a smile breaking over his face. “Those for me?”

She looked down at the flowers in her hand. “No!” she said hastily, but then decided she had been too harsh. “Well, you can have one,” she said, and walked over to hand him a single flower. 

“Aw, thanks, sweetie,” he said, tucking it behind his ear. “You looking for your mother?”

“No. Where’s Jesse?”

“Jesse? It’s his day off, he’s left the base. Those flowers for him?”

Fareeha gave a huge, theatrical sigh. “No!”

“Are they for your mother?”

“No!”

“Well then, what are you going to do with them?”

Fareeha glanced around the room to make sure they were alone. It was empty but for the two of them. Even so, she hopped up on the couch next to him and put her face up to his ear to whisper, “I’m going to give them to the new medic, Dr. Ziegler.”

Gabriel smiled. “I’m sure she’ll love them, Fareeha.” he said. Fareeha beamed. “But why’re you looking for Jesse then?” 

“Oh,” she said, “he was helping me decide what to do and I wanted to show him I found flowers!” 

“Well, I don’t think he’ll be back on base until tonight, Fareeha, so you may have to go ahead and give them to her and just tell him about it later.” Gabriel smiled. “I’m sure he’d love to hear.” 

Fareeha hesitated. “Well, okay. Thanks, Gabriel!” She got up off the couch and marched out the door, clutching her flowers with purpose.

Mere minutes later, she was walking back into the lounge to sheepishly ask Gabriel, “Do you know where I can find Dr. Ziegler?” She had no idea. Gabriel laughed and told her the doctor was taking inventory at the medical bay today.

“Try not to make any trouble, alright kiddo?” he said, “I know the staff here is used to you coming and going, but Ziegler and the other newbies might not know what to do with a 12-year-old underfoot.”

“How dare, you, Gabriel Reyes?” Fareeha drew herself up to her full height and planted her hands on her hips. “I am 13, not 12, and I do not get ‘underfoot’ or ever bother anyone!”

Gabriel raised his hands in concession. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Run along now.” He winked at her, and she grinned back before skipping out the door.

The med bay always smelled like a very specific mixture of disinfectant and latex, as though someone took care every day to make sure it never smelled more latex-y or less bleach-y than usual. But today, another smell had settled in the building alongside the others, very faint, but definitely there. Fareeha sniffed as she entered the bay through the big glass doors. It was a pine smell, but not a pristine, pine-scented cleanser type odor. It was more like how an actual pine tree smelled. 

“Ah, hello Miss Amari,” said the clerk at the front desk, smiling warmly at Fareeha. “What can I do for you today?”

“Where’s Dr. Ziegler?” asked Fareeha, “I have something very important to tell her!” It wasn’t a lie. It WAS important- but maybe not the kind of important the clerical staff would let her just march into the medical supply room for. Fareeha had pretty much free run of the Watchpoint, but there were certain places she needed a reason if she wanted to get into. ‘Carrying a message’ was a good one. It usually worked. And indeed, the clerk pointed her down the hall towards the inventory. 

Fareeha peeked her head in the door of the supply room and saw Dr. Ziegler there, her hair tied up in a ponytail, her lab coat unbuttoned, and holding a clipboard and pen. She was facing a wall of shelves, full of cardboard boxes containing who knows what. Probably latex gloves, surgical masks, bandages, that sort of thing. Fareeha cleared her throat.

Dr. Ziegler turned around to see where the sound had come from. “Oh! Hello there, Fareeha,” she said, a slightly confused look on her face. “Did you need something?” 

“Hello! Uh, no, I just came to tell you something.” Fareeha balked, suddenly feeling shy. The doctor was looking right at her with an inquisitive look in her eyes. Her blue, blue eyes. Fareeha’s heart fluttered and she gulped. 

“Did Ana need me for something?” she asked. That surprised Fareeha. Most Overwatch staff called her mother “Captain,” or “Captain Amari,” or if they were talking to Fareeha, “Your mother.” She’d only ever heard a few people call her “Ana.” Gabriel, Jack, and Reinhardt, mostly. Did they know each other that well already?

“No, I just, ah… wanted to give you these!” She held out the flowers, and turned her head to the side, blushing. 

“Oh!” sad Dr. Ziegler, “Er, thank you! Here-” she took them from Fareeha and sniffed them. She smiled. “They’re lovely.” Fareeha felt herself blush even harder. 

“Come with me,” said Dr. Ziegler. She put her clipboard down and led Fareeha out of the supply room and down the hall to an office. It had a brand new plaque on the door that read “Dr. Angela Ziegler” and the piney scent Fareeha had noticed before was emanating from inside it. She peeked in through the door. Inside the office was a broad oak desk with a few papers and pens, some cardboard boxes on the floor, and some relatively empty bookshelves. One of the few things on them was a burned-down green pillar candle next to a box of identical, unused candles. The box said “Swiss Pine” on the side. That must be where the smell was coming from. 

Dr. Ziegler reached into one of the boxes and pulled out a short glass vase. She placed the flowers in it and arranged them evenly. She looked at them for a moment, then gave a little noise of realization (not an “oh” but almost), and said, “I’ll get some water for these,” and picked the vase up. “You can wait in here, Fareeha,” she said with a warm smile, and walked out of the office. Left alone in the room, Fareeha started to feel worried. Was giving flowers to Dr. Ziegler stupid? She’d just picked them off the ground with her hands… what if she seemed childish to her? It seemed like such a weak gesture now, compared to how strongly she felt.

Trying to calm herself down, she rocked back on her heels and looked around the room. Not much had been unpacked yet. Besides the pine-scented candles, just a bottle of lotion, a couple of coffee mugs, and a some bookends (with no books) had been placed on the shelves. She glanced around at the boxes on the floor. One of them, opened but still not unpacked, was labeled “Bücher” and full to the brim with books. Fareeha leaned over and looked at the titles on the spines. Many of them were in German, and she couldn’t understand what they said. The others had long, complicated titles to do with medicine, and she couldn’t understand those either. She felt a little awed at how smart Dr. Ziegler was. 

Another of the boxes was open and only partly full. The things already on the shelves had probably come out of that one. Fareeha peeked inside and saw a bewildering assortment of perfectly normal items that were not normal to keep in an office. A bathrobe, a pair of slippers, a toothbrush, a pillow, a blanket, and a few clean shirts. Was Dr. Ziegler planning on living here? In her office? 

Fareeha jumped when she heard Dr. Ziegler come back into the room, caught in the act of snooping into her belongings. 

Dr. Ziegler’s cheeks turned pink when she saw which box Fareeha was examining. “Ah,” she said, looking flustered, “I… those are for if I end up working late… sometimes I stay in longer than I intend to…” She placed the vase, now filled with water, on her desk and hastily pushed the box out of the middle of the room into the corner. They stood there awkwardly for a moment, the doctor looking about as embarrassed as Fareeha felt. But that was no good, thought Fareeha. Why would you be embarrassed about working hard?

“You must really care about your job!” Fareeha blurted out. Why did she say that? That sounded so dumb! But she didn’t want Dr. Ziegler to be embarrassed because of her. Fareeha certainly didn’t think working late was bad. Her mother did it. Gabriel and Jack did it all the time. But it just meant they were devoted to their jobs, to Overwatch. And Overwatch was amazing, incredible. It did so much good for everyone across the world, and Fareeha wanted desperately to join it someday. Dr. Ziegler was 5 years older than her, and had already been hired by the organization. The idea that someone could join so young was incredibly exciting. She, too, might be able to join Overwatch just 5 years from now if it was possible for Dr. Ziegler to do so. Right?

“I- I do care about my job,” Dr. Ziegler said, looking a little less flustered. “It’s very important to me.”

The nervous smile on the doctor’s face took Fareeha’s breath away. She had never felt so drawn to a person. Everything about Dr. Ziegler impressed and amazed her. She was smart, beautiful, and full of a devotion to helping people that paralleled Gabriel’s, Jack’s, or even her mother’s. Fareeha just stood there, gazing at this incredible woman for what felt like an eternity before Dr Ziegler said, “I must be getting back to work now. Thank you very much for the flowers, Fareeha. I’ll see you later.” She walked out of the room and back down the hall to the inventory, leaving Fareeha standing alone in the office. 

She blinked and looked around. There wasn't much left to see in here, but she felt like this room was a window into the doctor's life, like she might find some deeper understanding of her here, if she looked hard enough. She walked over to the desk and looked at the vase of flowers. They had become wilted as she had walked over, but a few minutes in the water had made them perk up again. Fareeha smiled. It occurred to her that she would be seeing a lot of the doctor from now on, especially if she was friends with her mother. This brilliant, amazing woman was here, at Watchpoint Gibraltar, to stay. Fareeha had never felt so lucky in all her life.

-

Fareeha was sitting on the cliffs, deep in thought, when she heard footsteps.

“Howdy,” came Jesse’s voice from behind her. She tilted her head backwards to look at him upside-down.

“Hello, Jesse.”

“So,” he said, sitting down on the grass beside her and resting his arms on his knees, “how’d it go with the doc?”

“She’s incredible, Jesse!” Fareeha threw her hands up in the air. “I think I’m in love with her!”

Jesse smiled, and it was the kind of smile he gave her when he thought she was being cute. She wasn’t sure she liked that. She wasn’t trying to be cute. She was serious!

“I mean it, Jesse!”

“All right, all right, sugar,” he said, “I hear ya.”

She breathed out, feeling reassured. His smile now was more one of understanding. 

“But listen, sweetpea,” he continued after a moment. Fareeha looked up at him, curious. “If you’re really serious about her, you may want to wait a bit to try and... “ he trailed off.

“Try and what?”

“Er, get her to marry you?” he rubbed the hair at the back of his neck up and down with his hand. 

“Oh. Why?” she demanded.

“Meaning no disrespect, pumpkin, but you’re a bit young for her.” 

Fareeha felt a blush rising in her cheeks as she glared at him. “I’m not a baby, Jesse! I’m old enough to fall in love!” she shouted at him, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes.

“All right, all right,” he said, putting his hands up in concession. “That’s not what I meant. All I’m sayin’ is if you really want to impress her, you want her to think you’re as incredible as you think she is-”

“She IS incredible, Jesse! She’s done so many amazing things! She’s so smart and-”

“That is exactly what I’m saying, sweetheart,” he interrupted. “You gotta be incredible, too. Make your mark on the world, be the best you can be. Then there’s no way she’d say no to you. But that’s gonna take time.”

Fareeha looked at him, thinking. She didn’t want him to be right. But hadn’t she just been thinking earlier about how impressive all Dr. Ziegler’s accomplishments were? She was an accomplished, experienced doctor already. And what had Fareeha accomplished? Nothing. Well, she did well in school, but not medical school. She’d never saved anyone’s life or made a groundbreaking discovery. There were so many more important things for Dr. Ziegler to pay attention to than her. But she could change that. She was nothing if not determined. If she worked hard, she could save people, protect them. Be a hero. 

Fareeha leapt to her feet in a single, smooth movement. She pointed straight at Jesse’s face with a single finger, almost touching his nose. His eyes crossed a bit trying to look at it. “I’ll show you, Jesse! I’ll be as amazing as Dr. Ziegler someday!”

Jesse grinned. “That’s my girl,” he said. “She really is something, isn’t she?”

“Hey! You’d better not try to steal her, Jesse McCree!”

He barked a laugh. “Not much chance of that, darlin’, don’t you worry.”

She huffed and put her hands on her hips. “All right. Well then, do you want to do target practice together today?” 

“Sure thing, sweetpea,” he said, getting to his feet and straightening his hat. “We’re gonna need to improve your aim if you’re gonna save the world.”


	2. I will protect the innocent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 8 years after first meeting Angela, Fareeha is about to start a new job at Helix Security. She tries desperately to find a special, romantic way to say goodbye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was beta read by Sam from the Queen Pharah discord server!

Fareeha breathed out, looking for the hundredth time at the letter from Helix Security offering her a job. Her service in the Egyptian Armed Forces had ended only a few months ago, and already she was leaving home again. In just under a week, a plane would pick her up from the Watchpoint’s runway and take her to Helix’s headquarters to receive her assignment. It wasn’t Overwatch, but it was an opportunity to keep people safe. That was all she wanted.

Her mother opened her bedroom door. “It’s time to go, habibti, we don’t want to be late.” 

Fareeha stood up. “I’m ready.”

They were going off-base to her favorite restaurant for a celebration dinner. Jack and Gabriel would be there, too. She had so many people to say goodbye to, from her mother, to her colleagues, to Jesse and Genji… to Angela. She didn’t know how to say goodbye to Angela. They had gotten to know each other in the eight years since the young doctor had joined Overwatch. Fareeha called her by her first name now, rather than “Dr. Ziegler.” She wasn’t just a beautiful stranger Fareeha mooned over from afar. But still she felt nervous. Her relationship with Angela was different than with anyone else. She was going to dinner with her mother, she was having a game night with Jesse and Genji later that week, but Angela? She had no plans, and no ideas for plans.

So she would do what she always did. Ask Jesse. He was the only one who knew about her crush, after all. Well, the only one she had told about it. She followed her mother out the door, resolving to talk to him tomorrow, after their usual sparring session.

-

Fareeha always felt good after exercising, and some of her confidence returned as she walked Jesse back to his room from the practice range.

“I want to do something… to say goodbye to Angela.” she said, stretching as they walked down the hall of the Blackwatch agents’ quarters. “A gesture.” 

“What, like asking her on a date?”

She shoved him playfully. “No! I don’t deserve her yet. But I will. I will protect the innocent, just like she does.” A smile broke across her face.

“Well, then. Do you remember what you did the day you decided on that goal?”

“I brought her flowers.” Fareeha said as they rounded the corner.

“Maybe do that again. It’d be something of a callback to that. Bookends on the time the two of you were both here at the Watchpoint.” Jesse stopped at his bedroom door and got out his key. 

As he opened the door, Fareeha punched him in the arm. “When did you become such a romantic?” she laughed.

“I’ll have you know I’ve always been a charmer.”

Genji, who was reading something on his datapad as he lay on his bed, snorted. Jesse shot him an annoyed look, then turned back to Fareeha. “Ask Ana, she’ll back me up.” he said. Fareeha groaned.

“Anyway,” she said, giving him a shove, “You know Angela pretty well, Genji.”

He looked up from his datapad. “Yes?”

“When I leave, I want to say goodbye to her. Something special.” 

Genji put his datapad down on the mattress beside him and sat up a little straighter. “You know her quite well yourself, Fareeha. You and your mother have her over for dinner at least once a week, don’t you? And you’re always helping out around the base, running errands and things. For her and the Captain and the Commander.”

Fareeha felt her face getting hot. “That’s not… what I mean.” He was right- she and Angela talked almost every day. Fareeha had carried messages around the base for her mother, Jack, and Gabriel for as long as she could remember, often to Angela. They were friends, that was true. But she had never stopped being infatuated with her. Not once in eight years had she looked at Angela without her heart fluttering, without feeling her breath catch in her throat. She didn’t want the sort of goodbye you would give to a friend. She wanted something romantic. She blushed from her ears down to her shoulders as she realized all of a sudden that what she wanted was a goodbye that doubled as a confession of love.

Genji was looking at her, puzzled. “Are you alright, Fareeha?” 

“Yes,” she said hastily. “I, ah, thought of something. I’ll see you later.” she rushed out the door, closing it behind her and striding down the hallway, feeling breathless.

-

Fareeha sat by the cliff next to the comm tower, trying to clear her head. She was 21 and had never done this before. She drew her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them. The Mediterranean Sea sparkled in the sunlight, and the sea breeze blew her hair out of her face. She thought of Angela’s laugh, the way it sparkled too, and couldn’t keep herself from smiling. 

Angela was incredible. Everything she did, she did with passion. She had saved hundreds of lives with her own two hands, and countless more with the development of her biotic technology. She worked tirelessly. Fareeha remembered one night Angela, on the verge of a breakthrough, had canceled her plans to have dinner with the Amaris to work on a project. Fareeha’s mother had sent her to check on Angela later in the evening, sending some coffee along with her. 

“Thank you, Fareeha,” Angela had sighed with relief, accepting the coffee. Then as Fareeha had turned to leave, she stopped her. “Wait. Would you stay here with me and listen to my ideas?”

“All right,” Fareeha had replied, somewhat apprehensively, and sat down on the carpeted floor of the office to listen.

Angela had then begun explaining something about her biotic technology that Fareeha, at the time only 16, hadn’t really understood. But apparently just narrating her ideas out loud was helpful, because as the night wore on Angela had only become more energetic and enthusiastic. Fareeha had found herself dozing off, sitting on the carpeted floor and leaning against the desk. Angela had produced a pillow and blanket from a cabinet and given them to her, and she had fallen asleep right there at her feet. 

When Fareeha had woken up, Angela had been laying on the floor beside her, sound asleep. Her heart had skipped a beat, seeing Angela’s sleeping face. She had looked peaceful, with her mouth hanging open slightly and her hair falling out of its ponytail. Fareeha had longed to reach out and touch it, to tuck it back behind her ear and feel if it was really as soft as she always thought it looked.

But then, Angela had woken up and, seeing Fareeha was awake, exclaimed “I’ve found it! The answer I was looking for!” She had gotten to her feet and showed Fareeha the papers on her desk. There had been some sort of diagram, and pages and pages of notes and sketches. Fareeha hadn’t understood all the medical terminology, but the sheer excitement on Angela’s face had left her starstruck for days.

That passion, that dedication to helping people and saving lives, that was what Fareeha admired most about Angela. The day she met her, she had been enchanted by her smile, her laughter, and her beautiful hair. But in the years since then, she’d grown to love her spirit and her personality. And as she’d gotten older, her childlike infatuation had changed, too. She wanted more than just to spend time with Angela. She blushed and buried her face in her knees as the thought of kissing her pushed itself to the front of her mind. She wanted to know if Angela’s lips were as soft as she imagined. She wanted to taste the beeswax chapstick she always kept on her desk. She wanted to wrap her arms around her and run her hands through her hair. Breathing heavily, she took her face off her knees and turned her head to the side. 

The rocks beside her were still covered with sweet pea flowers, just as they had been eight years ago. Maybe Jesse was onto something. 

-

Fareeha sat in the Blackwatch agents’ common room, watching Genji hook up the video game console to the TV. Jesse was at the kitchenette at the other side of the room, trying to make popcorn. He put the lid on the pot and walked back over to the couch.

“So, did you decide on how to say goodbye to the doc?” he asked, flopping down beside her. 

“Ah,” she said, glancing nervously at Genji. She had as good as told him about her crush when she had gone to their room a few days ago, and while she wasn’t too embarrassed, it felt weird to talk about it in front of him. The only person she had ever discussed it with before was Jesse.

Genji returned her gaze. “I won’t say anything,” he said. 

She turned back to Jesse. “I thought about what you said.”

“Uh huh?”

“I’m going to do it.”

“Just the flowers? Nothing else?” said Genji. Fareeha whipped her head around to look at him. He shrugged. “I meant I wouldn’t say anything to Angela.”

Jesse snorted. “So, are you sayin’ you have a suggestion?” he asked.

Genji shrugged. “Dr. Ziegler isn’t… receptive enough to know what you are trying to tell her just from flowers.” Fareeha narrowed her eyes at him. “I don’t mean that she isn’t smart,” he continued. “She is a medical genius. I know this more than anyone.” Fareeha blushed. He was right. Of course Genji, the man whose body Angela had reconstructed and rehabilitated beyond all odds, would never claim she wasn’t smart. “But,” he went on, “she is not the best at picking up on hints. You have to tell her exactly what you mean. Or show her.” he and Jesse shared a look. Fareeha rolled her eyes. The two of them were always doing that.

“Whatever that means.” she said.

“What I’m saying is,” Genji replied, “you might think that it’s awkward, but if you aren’t clear, it will go over her head.”

Fareeha huffed and slumped down on the couch.

“Take some time to think about it,” said Genji. “You have what, two more days until you leave? You’ll figure out something to say.” He tossed her a video game controller. “But do it tomorrow. In the meantime you and I have to beat McCree into the ground.” 

Fareeha smirked. “We certainly do.”

Jesse chuckled. “You’re on!”

-

The whole next day, Fareeha thought about it. She spent the morning packing, putting clothes and books into her big duffel bag, wondering how often she would even need clothes other than her uniform. It wasn’t the military, of course, but how similar would it be? And how much time would she even have for reading? What would she say to Angela tomorrow? She sighed. Every idea she had, she imagined she would be too shy to actually say out loud. 

Genji had said she had to tell her what she meant. Or show her. Show her… would that be any easier? She thought again about kissing Angela. But she couldn’t do that. That was much too forward. 

She would ask her mother for advice if that wouldn’t be completely mortifying.

Maybe she should just wing it. 

She flopped down on her stomach on her bed. No, that was a terrible idea. She should take a walk to clear her head.

She went to the cliff by the comm tower again. The sea breeze was a bit stronger than usual, and it buffeted the sweet pea blossoms clinging to the rocks and to the building. She picked one and tucked it behind her ear.

This job with Helix was an excellent opportunity. But she wouldn’t be home again for ages. It was agonizing to think that she might leave with regrets, and she knew that she would regret it if she didn’t tell Angela how she felt. 

She slumped against the side of the tower. She took the flower out from behind her ear and looked at it, twirling it in her fingers. An idea occurred to her.

-

Her bags were packed. Her room was tidy. She’d said her goodbyes. Except for one. Heart hammering in her chest, Fareeha stood in the hallway of the med bay, outside Angela’s office. 

Taking a deep breath, she raised her fist and knocked on the door.

“Come in,” said Angela’s voice from behind the door. Fareeha opened it and stepped inside. One of Angela’s pine-scented candles was burning on her desk (far removed from any papers), filling the room with its faint, fresh smell. Angela looked up from her work.

“Fareeha!” she said with a smile. “I’m glad you came by. I wanted to wish you good luck at your new position.” 

“Thank you,” Fareeha said with a warm smile. “I just wanted to make sure to say goodbye.”

Angela got to her feet and walked out from behind her desk. She shook Fareeha’s hand in both of hers. “Congratulations,” she said, “I know you will do well.”

As Angela began to draw her hands away, Fareeha held on to one of them. She raised it to her lips, kissing Angela’s knuckles softly as she looked into her eyes. 

Angela gave the softest of gasps, and her cheeks turned pink. She kept eye contact with Fareeha as the blush spread to the rest of her face.

Fareeha’s breathing had picked up to match her racing heart. The reality that she might not see Angela again, for years, maybe, had filled her with a courage she had never felt before. With her free hand, she plucked the sweet pea flower she had picked that morning out of her hair. Willing her hand to keep from trembling, she reached out and tucked the flower behind Angela’s ear. 

“We’ll see each other again,” Fareeha whispered. “Someday in the future.”

“I-I’ll miss you, Fareeha,” Angela stammered.

“I’ll miss you, too. I wish you luck with your work as well. I know everything you do is so important to Overwatch and to the world. I hope to protect people too.”

Angela slowly took her hand back. “Th-thank you.”

Fareeha gave her a smile that she hoped wasn’t shaky. “I need to jet,” she said. “Goodbye, Angela.”

“Goodbye.”

Fareeha turned and left the office. The ship wouldn’t arrive to pick her up for another hour, but she broke into a run as she left the building, her body flooding with newfound energy as her heart soared.


End file.
